The Black Sheep returns
by CarterVictoria
Summary: What would happen if Spencer had ANOTHER sister, a younger one, named Charlotte. This is what happens when Charlotte Hastings comes home after five years living at a boarding school and secrets that Spencer never expected come out about her family.
1. Compassioniate

**So this story is a little different… everything in the story has already happened the only difference is that Spencer has a younger sister as well as her older sister Melissa. This is what happens when Charlotte, Spencer's younger sister comes home from her boarding school that her parents sent her to.**

**I own nothing. Sad.**

_**Compassion**_

Spencer woke up thinking that today would be just like every other day. Wake up, go to school, go to field hockey practice, go home, fight with her sister and parents, and do hours and hours of mind numbing homework and finally crash into bed around 1 A.M. She thought this until she heard the front door open and bags and things hit the floor.

Spencer goes down stairs

"Hello? Anyone here?" Charlottes raspy voice echoed through the empty house

Spencer is in shock and almost doesn't recognize her baby sister. She hasn't seen her in about three years.

"Charlotte? What are you doing here?" Spencer's voice is high pitched with shock

"Hey Spence!" Charlotte hugs her older sister "Mom and Dad didn't tell you I was coming?" Spencer shakes her head "My dorm room is being tented so I had to come home." Spencer is still in disbelief and Charlotte grabs a water bottle out of the fridge and sits down at the island strategically placed in the middle of the rather large kitchen. "So, where is the wicked witch of the west and her flying monkey anyway? Playing tennis at the club? Or at a fancy dinner with the Flumingbergenheffers?" Spencer laughs she always found her hilarious.

"They're in New York City for the week." Spencer has sympathy in her voice and her eyes.

"Of course they are, I call and tell them I'm coming home for a week and the whisk off to New York so they don't have to see or deal with me. How perfect for them." Charlotte is not necessarily angry but not hurt, she is merely stating a fact. "Where's ma and pa's pride and joy?"

"Melissa? She's in the barn." Spencer is still upset that Melissa got the barn and she didn't "She's living there now."

"Ah… going places I see…" Spencer has always been amazed at her sister's snarky, strong personality. She always wanted to be more like her, but she would never admit that out loud… to anyone… especially Charlotte.

"Hmm… well you know Melissa. Do you want help with your bags. We can bring them up to the guest ro- I mean your room." Charlotte looks a little hurt now but quickly masks it with a snarky comment.

"Ah… Martha Stewart couldn't wait to get rid of me so she could trash my stuff and replace it with something classy… or whatever you want to call it."

Spencer and Charlotte bring her stuff up to what used to be her room. "Home sweet prison cell, huh? It is just as I remembered it, cold and unfeeling. No place like the Hasting's" Spencer puts Charlotte's bags on the floor at the foot of the bed and sits down and the desk.

"So… what's been going on here? I know I haven't gotten to talk to you since the whole Ali thing. How are you doing?" Charlotte has always been the most compassionate of the Hastings clan… one of the many reasons her parents weren't her biggest fans.

"Um… it's been pretty hard, you know as well as I do that you won't get any sympathy around here… even when your best friend is murdered." Charlotte walks over to Spencer and gives her a big hug.

"I am so sorry you have to go through all of this. I wish I could be here to help you." Charlotte gives Spencer a half smile. "Wanna go for a walk or something. Take a look around old Rosewood with me. It's been a while."

"Sure."

Even though it had been three years… it felt like literally nothing had changed between them. Spence and Charlie were always really close. Even after Charlotte got sent away they tried to keep in touch but their parents weren't the most supportive of their relationship. As Charlotte put it once, they treated her like a puppy that they didn't want anymore because they couldn't train it the way they wanted.


	2. Sporadic

**A/N: So I noticed in the last chapter I said that Spencer hasn't seen Charlotte in 3 years. Spencer and Charlotte had contact after she left for school but Charlotte hasn't had contact with anyone else from Rosewood including Melissa in 5 years. She was sent away when she was eleven and now she is 16. She is Mike Montgomery's age (Just for a reference point…) Thanks!**

** ~Carter V.**

**Once again… I own nothing except Charlotte and the idea for this story… **

_**Sporadic**_

Spencer and Charlotte walk downtown to get a cup of coffee and run into Aria.

"Hey Spence!" Aria shouts from behind the girls

Spencer turns around to see Aria standing with a cup of coffee in each hand

"Hey Aria! What's going on? Going to see Ezra?" Spencer gestures to the two coffees. Aria laughs and nods.

"Who's the new girl?" Aria points to Charlotte who hasn't moved from her place in line.

"Charlotte?" Spencer smiles and Aria's eyes bug out and her mouth drops.

"That's Charlie? Last time I saw her she was what? Eleven?"

"Hey Charlotte, C'mere!" Spencer calls to her sister and Charlotte walks over holding their coffees. "Do you remember Aria?"

Charlotte thinks about it for a minute "The girl with pink hair right?" Aria smiles and nods

"Yeah," Aria lets out a small, slightly embarrassed giggle and continues "oh my God, you are so grown up!" Aria looks at Charlotte in disbelief

"Yeah, well when you're sent away for five years, something's gotta happen." Charlotte gives Aria a reassuring smile and looks at Spencer. Spencer smiles back and looks back at Aria

"So I'll let you get to your date. We'll talk to you later okay?" Spencer and Aria hug and they all go their separate ways.

Spencer and Charlotte go back to their house and Melissa is in the main house, something that doesn't happen all that often.

"Shit. I was hoping she would disappear too." Melissa is in the kitchen making a salad and they both walk in and bee line for the stairs but she looks up and has the fakest voice possible

"Charlotte! You finally come home for a visit and you don't even stop to say hello to your oldest sister?" Melissa looks at Charlotte with a smile and then it fades when she turns to Spencer.

With extreme sarcasm "Oh my God, how could I? What is wrong with me? You don't write or call or try to make any contact with me for five years but I don't say hi… what? How rude of me!" Charlotte runs up the stairs into the guest room.

"What is wrong with _her_." Melissa says in her typical snobby voice. Spencer looks at her in complete disbelief, as always, and runs up the stairs after Charlotte.

"Charlotte?" Spencer lightly knocks on the door and opens it quietly and walks into the room. She sits on the edge of the bed next to Charlotte. "What was that?" Spencer has never seen Charlotte lose her temper so easily.

"What was what?" Charlotte replies and Spencer realizes she's crying but doesn't say anything.

"Why did you freak out like that? You've never done that before." Charlotte looks Spencer in the eye, sighs and sits up on the bed.

"Is it too much to ask that when I come home, for the first time in _5 years _that my parents are home, and they may even _want _to see me. Or that my oldest sister give me a genuine hello and maybe ask me how I've been? I know we've never been close but it's just hard to realize that I haven't even been missed around here." Spencer starts to tear up a little too and she sits there for a minute trying to think of something to say to comfort Charlotte and thinks… Would anyone miss her? "I've been trying really hard to pretend that it doesn't bother me, but it does. I don't want it to but I guess I can't help that." Spencer hugs her sister for a long time until her phone bleeps. One New Text Message:

_ Just think…. That could have been you. Say' hi' to the black sheep for me…_

_ Xoxo_

_ -A_

**I figured I would upload two chapters as a little teaser… If I get any reviews I will post a third chapter in a little bit. Thanks for reading PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review!**


	3. Authors Note for y'all

**A/N: Soooooo if I get some more reviews tonight I might be nice enough to post a third chapter… so it is up to you guys. **

**Things to look forward to in future chapters:**

**A new relationship**

**A HUUGGEE family secret**

**And some sibling love along with sibling rivalry**

**And OF COURSE some shenanigans from our beloved A**


	4. Flirty

**Thank you sooo much for all of your reviews! That means sooo much to me! Keep 'em coming after this chapter! Maybe I'll post 4 soon too. Hmm… Aight. So third chapter here we go…. I have been having a little bit of a hard time trying to find out where I am going with this. I have SOO many ideas I just don't know how to put them into writing. Oh well… here's my best shot.**

_**Flirty**_

To clear her mind of her insensitive, pompous family, Charlotte decided to go for a walk around town. She hadn't been here in five years but for some reason, it felt like nothing had changed. She felt completely at home in the small town. The elementary school looked exactly the same as she remembered it. Sadly that is one of her last memories in Rosewood.

FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_ Charlotte was sitting on a swing crying and an eleven year old Mike Montgomery walked up and sat on the swing beside her._

_ "Char, what's wrong?" Mike's young, naïve eyes didn't leave Charlottes heartbroken face._

_ "They're sending me away. To boarding school" Charlotte broke down and started sobbing. Something that even Mike, one of her oldest (and only friends) had never seen._

_ "What? They can't do that!" Mike stood up and stomped his foot. Not only was Mike one of Charlottes only friends Charlotte was one of his only friends, she was his __**best**__ friend._

_ "Well they are… and I have no say in it… it's like…" Charlotte stopped what she was saying, because saying it out loud would mean it was true._

_ "It's like what?" Mike walked up to her and hugged her_

_ "It's like they don't want me anymore."_

END OF FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlotte sat on the bleachers at the high schools soccer/lacrosse field thinking about the last time she saw Mike and the last time she was in Rosewood. What if her parents didn't make her cut all ties with her friends from Rosewood? What if she _had_ gone to Rosewood High, what if she was on the soccer team, or if she had played field hockey with her sister, instead of the team at Burshire Academy. She had really turned her life around, why couldn't she have done that here, with her friends and family? What if she didn't have to leave Mike behind?

"So, the wild child returns!" A booming voice from behind made Charlotte jump, she turned around to see a very grown up Mike Montgomery. She couldn't help but smile a little bit.

"Mike?" She jumped off the bleachers and walked over to where Mike was standing with his lacrosse equipment. They awkwardly hesitate and then hug.

"When did you get back?" Mike crosses his arms and leans against the bleachers

"I'm not really _back. _I just had to come home because my dorm room at B.A. is being tented for termites." Charlotte looked away to stop herself from crying. She hasn't seen Mike in years and she couldn't help but want to cry.

"Oh so you have to go back?" Mike looked a little sad about that

"Yeah in like a week." Charlotte looked down at his stuff "You're playing lacrosse?" Mike smiles really big and nods his head "You always wanted to play varsity." Charlotte hugs Mike again "That's great!"

"Yeah" There is a small pause "Hey, you wanna come over for dinner?"

"Yeah, that would be great." Charlotte can't help but give him a huge smile as they fall in step with one another on the way to Mike's house. "So… what's been going on here? Anything exciting?"

"Nah…"


	5. Bold

**Chapter four: Okay so what did y'all think of the last chapter? Mike and Charlotte, what's gonna happen? What do YOU think should happen? Review or PM me to let me know your ideas. So chapter four: dinner with the Montgomery's. Yay! And also thank you for all of the AWESOME reviews!**

_**Bold**_

Mike and Charlotte get back to his house and it seems like no one else is home yet. Aria was probably with Spencer or Hanna or someone and his parents were probably still working.

"So you want a tour? It's been a while." Charlotte smiles and nods and Mike leads her down the hall and shows her around the downstairs. Secretly she thought, she didn't need a tour. She knew this house like the back of her hand. She basically lived here from age's seven to eleven. It was her safe haven away from home, away from her family. "So should we tour the upstairs?" Mike leads her up the stairs and shows her to his room. "This is my place." Charlotte walks through the door and sits on a recliner chair in the corner of the room. On the walls there are tons of pictures and old baseball cards.

"No way!" Charlotte walks up to the wall and looks closer at a picture of her and Mike. "Oh my God I can't believe you still have this!" Mike turns around and looks at her, he lets out a small scoff and walks up next to her.

"Yeah, remember that day?" They both start to giggle a little bit, clearly remembering their day at the beach with his family.

"How could I forget? You chased me around the entire beach holding a snail yelling 'Kiss him! Kiss him!' and then I got really sick on the way home."

"Oh yeah I forgot about that part…" Mike looks down at his shoes

"Yeah but it is still one of my best days." Charlotte looks at Mike, she doesn't remember him being so… cute and rugged. Granted he was eleven the last time she saw him in person, but still. After a few minutes of intense eye contact she turned her head back to the wall of pictures. They are standing close, maybe too close, but she liked it. Mike being the bold player that he is puts his hand on the small of her back and she leans into him. That same question pops into Charlottes head again:

_What if she didn't have to leave Mike behind?_

Suddenly Aria bursts through Mike's door and Charlotte and Mike jump apart to opposite sides of the room. "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt anything." Aria has a slight smirk

"You didn't" Mike says standing awkwardly in the middle of his room; he puts his hands in his pockets. Charlotte walks back over to him and looks at Aria. Aria smiles at her

"Mom just called and said to order something, her and dad are running late, but they'll be here soon." She starts to walk out of the room and then turns back and looks at Charlotte

"Welcome home."


	6. Another Authors Note for y'all

**A/N: Okay so what did y'all think of the fourth chapter? Any ideas of what might happen with Mike and Charlotte?**

**Anyway thank you all for your awesome reviews… anyone who reviews for **_**Bold**_** will get a shout out in the beginning of the fifth chapter. exciting. Haha SO PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review! Thank you!**

**Also things to look forward to in the next chapters:**

**The HUGEEE family secret is revealed soon**

**A bombshell is dropped by Charlotte**

**More of Mike and Charlotte**

**A bigger glimpse into the Hastings sisters' relationship**

**And maybe more Flashbacks. Let me know what you think and send in any ideas you would like to see make it into my story because if I get any good ones I might put them into my story.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing y'all!**

**~Carter **


	7. Emotionally Unstable

**A real quick shout out to **_**mslynn28, Iceyhearted, GirlieXGirl16**_** they're my great reviewers from chapter 5! Thanks guys! YAY! Chapter five! This is the rest of Charlotte's dinner at the Montgomery's house. So I'm not going to bore you with a long authors note since I already posted a separate one… so here we go!**

**Oh Yeah almost forgot… I don't own anything, except Charlotte. :/ **

_**Emotionally "Unstable"**_

"Hello? Kids?" Ella Montgomery comes through the door shouting

"In here mom!" Aria shouts from the dining room. Ella walks into the room dumping books and bags onto an empty chair in the corner and starts talking without looking up and without noticing that Charlotte is there. All three kids share a look and they all smile at one another. "I am so sorry I'm late, my meeting ran long and you know Principal Cummings, she never stops talking. Oh, your father isn't joining us for dinner; he had a working dinner with the English department tonight. Oh Aria did you-" Ella stops talking when she looks up to see Charlotte Hastings sitting across the table from her. Ella smiles huge and runs around the table and hugs her. "Oh my God, Charlotte, you're so grown up! Look at you!" She pulls Charlotte out of her chair so she is standing face to face with her; Charlotte is a good six inches taller than her and her chocolate brown hair is flowing down well past her shoulders. Ella hugs her one more time before returning to her chair on the opposite side of the table. Charlotte can't help but feel at home here.

_Why can't my family be this warm and welcoming?_

"So Charlotte, tell me, how is… um… I'm sorry, what's it called?" Ella asks as she grabs a spoon full of veggie lo Mein from the Chinese food take out container.

"Burshire Academy" Charlotte states with as little enthusiasm as possible "It's… different. It's Competitive." She thinks for a second and then states "I hate it." She has never said that out loud before… to anyone, even Spencer. Ella's head shoots up from her plate along with Aria and Mike's; they all look at her intensely.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." Charlotte looks off in a different direction and stares at a tribal looking pot on the mantle.

Mike looks at Charlotte with the deepest sympathy "Do you really not like it there?" Charlotte looks back at Mike, trying not to cry. She shakes her head and replies

"No, I hate it. I hate the kids, they're all so mean, and the teachers don't help you at all, I feel like an outsider. I'm not like them." Charlotte pauses and realizes she has ruined their dinner "If you'll excuse me." Ella nods her head still staring at Charlotte. Charlotte walks out to the front yard and sits on the old wooden swing her and Mike used to take turns pushing each other on.

FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Age 10_

_Charlotte is sitting on the wooden swing "Okay I'm ready! Go!" Mike gives her a huge push and she starts to go really high when all of a sudden her footing slips and she falls on a root coming out of the tree and slashes her arm open. She looks up at Mike and he is panicking, she looks at him and all she says is "jerk_! _What did you do that for?" and starts laughing._

_END OF FLASHBACK~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

Charlotte has always been the toughest kid Mike knew, that's why seeing her so broken down was so hard for him. He knew how much she must hate being so vulnerable. He also knew what a shitty relationship she had with her parents, which is why for as long as she is in Rosewood, he will have her back. Mike follows her out to the old swing and sits down next to her.

"You okay Char?" Charlotte looks up with tears in her eyes and just nods. She puts her head on Mike's shoulder and they slowly start swinging back and forth.

"Your family must think I'm crazy." Charlotte says wiping away a tear that had escaped from her eye

"Psh please, have you met my family? You are more than sane in comparison." Mike puts his arm around Charlotte's shoulders and they just sit in silence for a while. "Do you want to come back inside for a little bit? Maybe watch a movie or something?" Mike looks so hopeful, his eyes were big and round, how could Charlotte say no to that?

"Sure, I'd love to." They go inside and watch old movies with Aria and Ella and Mike doesn't move his arm from around her shoulders, and she doesn't want him to. After a few hours Charlotte stands up off the couch and stretches her arms. "I should probably get going, Spencer's probably wondering where I am." She grabs her jacket and her bag.

"I was gonna go over to see Spencer anyway, I'll drive you home." Aria grabs her keys and Mike stands up too.

"I'll walk you out." Mike opens the door for Aria and Charlotte and as Aria walks to the car Mike grabs Charlottes arm and signals for her to stay by the door.

"What's up?" Charlotte lets out a little giggle and looks at Mike with a confused look. He looks a little scared. "What's the-" before she could even let out the rest of the sentence Mike had grabbed her and started to kiss her. She didn't pull away, she leaned in closer and after a moment, they each pulled away. Mike smiles and starts to walk in the house, before he shuts the door he turns back and smirks and says "Welcome home, by the way… I missed you." Charlotte has the biggest smile on her face and she runs to get into the car that Aria has been waiting in.

_Maybe I won't leave Mike behind this time._

**Alright readers! Show me some love and click on that little review button down there. THANKS!**

** ~Carter V.**


	8. Sneaky

** Hello again everyone! Thanks for the reviews, they mean so much to me and they really give me the motivation to keep updating! So This chapter will be a little bit different, this chapter will be a lot Spencer and Aria, I know it's a little weird but I needed a way to incorporate A. **

**I own nothing except Charlotte. **

**~Carter V.**

_**Sneaky**_

Charlotte and Aria pull up to the Hastings' home and Charlotte immediately runs upstairs, not wanting to face Spencer after her and Mike's kiss. Spencer, somewhat sarcastically yells up the stairs "Good night"

"Good night" is all that Charlotte yells back and then spencer hears some footsteps and a slamming door.

"Hmm, I wonder what's up with her…" Spencer has a puzzled look on her face

Aria looks at Spencer and smiles "I know…" She has an almost arrogant air about her. She plunks herself down on the coach and waits for Spencer to sit too.

"Okay…? What is it?" Spencer stares at Aria and waits for her reply.

"Well, we had dinner at my house tonight, we watched movies and Mike and Charlie looked pretty cozy together." Aria pauses, she loves keeping Spencer in suspense.

"And…?"

"And when we got ready to go, I offered to bring her home and before we left, they were kissing on my front porch."

"WHAT?" Spencer's face lights up "Mike and Charlie?" Spencer is in shock

"I know, Right?" Aria has a girlish squeal in her voice and Spencer shushes her so Charlotte doesn't over hear them talking about her.

"That's so weird." Spencer's smile fades a little and she looks at her phone message from A for about the millionth time.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Aria moves to the couch so she can be closer to Spencer and she places her hand on Spencer's shoulder.

Spencer looks up to Aria and shows her the text:

_Just think…. That could have been you. Say 'hi' to the black sheep for me…_

_Xoxo_

_-A_

Aria looks just as confused as Spencer "What does that even mean?" Spencer just shrugs in reply and looks at her phone again.

"Then only thing I can think is that it could have been me, you know, the one they sent away. But that doesn't make any sense because they sent Charlotte away for disciplinary reasons, right?" Aria looks so confused and they hear Charlotte's door open from the top of the stairs again and hear her come down the stairs

"Hey, I'm gonna go for a walk, I'll be back in a bit." Spencer looks up at her

"But you just got home." Charlotte grabs her stuff getting ready to leave

"Yeah, I'll be back in a little bit." Without waiting for a response Charlotte walks out the door and Spencer turns back to Aria, shaking her head a little bit.

"How has it been?" Spencer gets up and walks over to the coffee maker to make a fresh pot "How has what been?" She grabs two mugs out of the cupboard, knowing full well that Aria _hates_ the way she makes her coffee.

"Having Charlotte around again, I mean it has to be a little weird, You guys haven't spoken in what two years?"

"Three. Yeah, I guess it's a little weird but it's nice to be able to spend some time with her, get to know her as a teenager and not a thirteen year old, eighth grader with an attitude problem." Spencer lets out a slight giggle and then turns grave and serious again.

"What's wrong? You okay?" Aria takes a seat at the island and grabs the cup of 'coffee' from Spencer.

"Yeah, it's just I _need _to find out what A means. I won't rest until I figure it out."

"Spence, you know A, it's probably nothing, it's probably just a message to make you crazy."

"Yeah, well its working." Spencer and Aria sit on the couch "I wonder where she went…" Spencer texts Charlotte

_Where did you go? Come home soon, it's getting late._

_~Spence_

Charlotte is back at the lacrosse field, but she isn't alone, she's with Mike. They are in the middle of making out when Charlotte's phone starts vibrating in her pocket. "Ugh. It's Spencer, probably just wondering where I am" Not even looking at the message, she shuts her phone and looks back up at Mike "Now where were we?" Mike laughs and grabs her hand

"Aren't you gonna get that?" Charlotte gives him a sly look

"Why would I?" They continue what they were doing

Mike takes off his lacrosse sweatshirt "Why don't we make it official?" Charlotte's smile grows even bigger and she just nods as he wraps his sweatshirt around her. Charlotte leans into him and they just lay there for a while until Charlotte and Mikes phones both ring at the same time.

WHERE ARE YOU?

~Spence

COME HOME NOW!

~Mom

"I am in so much trouble" They say at the same time. Before they leave they kiss one last time and go their separate ways. Charlotte walks quickly home and when she reaches her back down she tries to get in as quietly as possible. It's dark so she thinks she is safe and Spencer just went to bed. When she steps foot into the living room the lamp in the corner clicks on and Spencer is sitting in the recliner

"Where were you?" Spencer has a very serious look on her face, someone Charlotte did not want to mess with, this was very rare for her, and usually she wasn't afraid of anyone.

"I went for a walk" Forgetting that she was still wearing Mike's lacrosse sweatshirt, with _his name_ on the sleeve. The light in the other corner clicks on; little did Charlotte know Aria was still there "With my brother? Didn't you two get enough of each other on my _porch_?" Aria has a tiny smirk on her face and Spencer let out a little scoff and they turn on the rest of the lights.

Charlotte lets out a sigh of relief "You're not mad?" She looks at Spencer

"Are you kidding? I'm not mom remember?" Spencer laughs harder and hugs Charlotte "I'm just glad you're making the most of being here." Aria cuts in the middle of them

"Yeah, but did it really have to be with _my brother?_" Aria laughs a little too

"He's just such a good kisser." Charlotte stretches out the word kisser to make Aria uncomfortable and Aria sneers at her and then they both laugh. "Alright, I'm exhausted. I'm gonna go to bed now." Charlotte lets out a yawn

"For real this time? No more 'walks'?" Charlotte, ignores her sister and walks upstairs into her room her phone bleeps one last time

_Goodnight babe :D_

_~Mike_

Charlotte smiles as she reads it and she writes back

_G'night Sweets_

_~Char_

As she is changing into her pajamas she takes a look at the scar on her arm, the one from when she fell off the swing. Every time she looks at it, it reminds her of him. She puts his sweatshirt back on, it smells like him, a combination of Axe body spray and fresh air. It's comforting to her, for the first time in a very, very long time she goes to sleep with a smile on her face and not worrying about anything, not even her family.

**Soooooo, show me some loveeeee! REVIEW PLEASEEE! Seriously though, I know it is moving slowly but I am about drop a BOMBSHELL on all of you readers… so stay tuned. I am open to any suggestions for my story so let me know if you have any ideas, P.M. me if you would like! Thanks**

** ~Carter V.**


	9. Feisty

**Chapter 7! Yeah! Yeah!  
>I own nothing but Charlotte <strong>

** ~Carter V.**

**_Feisty_**

Charlotte walks downstairs into the kitchen, her hair is disheveled and all over the place and she is in sweatpants and Mikes sweatshirt.

"Good morning!" Spencer walks around the island packing books into her bag and filling her thermos with coffee.

"You're a morning person… I hate that." Spencer laughs out loud and continues what she is doing

"Why are you up so early?" Charlotte rolls her eyes slightly

"I am just used to it, at school we have early morning practice, I always wake up at this time."

"Well if you hurry up and get dressed, you can come to my practice." Spencer raises an eyebrow and smiles

"Really? Your coach would go for that?" Spencer nods and Charlotte runs upstairs and gets dressed. They head out and drive to Rosewood High. When they get to the field Spencer hands Charlotte her extra practice stick and they head to the field.

"Hey coach, this is my sister Charlotte, I was wondering if she could practice with us today? Her school is on a little hiatus right now." Spencer gives a slightly flirty smile and the coach says "sure" and throws a practice jersey at Charlotte.

Charlotte throws it on and whispers to Spencer "Sibling rivalry, it's on girl." Charlotte recognized some of the girls from elementary school and middle school. It was weird to see them all grown up. The whistle blows and the girls start their scrimmage. Charlotte's team wins, and she ends up scoring almost all of the goals. After the whistle blows signaling the end of practice Spencer walks up to Charlotte "Good game, I had no idea that you were _that _good." Charlotte gives her a sly smile

"Leading scorer for Varsity at the academy" Charlotte is looking past Spencer to the lacrosse field hoping to catch a glimpse of Mike. Mike looks over and does a double take when he sees Charlotte standing in a Rosewood jersey. He runs over to her and hugs her picking her up and spinning her around.

"What's going on? Why are you here?" Charlotte acts hurt

"What? You don't want me here?" She smiles at him "I'm just practicing with Spence's hockey team today, I need to keep my workout routine." Mike looks disappointed "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just thought that maybe you were _here._" Charlotte looks down at her shoes and fiddles with her field hockey stick

"Yeah, I wish." The bell rings signaling first period "Well, I better let you go, I don't want you to be late to class" Charlotte is still a little down, Mike puts his hand under her chin and lifts her head up to look up to him "hey, it's gonna be okay. I have to go, I'll talk to you later… stay out of trouble." He gives her his cute smirk

"Yeah, yeah" Mike kisses her goodbye and Spencer walks over to Charlotte and tosses her the keys

"You can take the car, just in case you need it." Spencer hands her the rest of her hockey stuff

"Okay, I'll pick you up at three." Charlotte gives her a little smile and starts for the parking lot she looks back at all the kids running towards the school.

_Why couldn't __**I **__have stayed in Rosewood?_

_ Why __**me**__?_

When Charlotte pulls up to the house, there is an extra car in the driveway, _her parents._

Charlotte lets out a groan, her two least favorite people in the world, would they even recognize her? It has been five years. Charlotte walks into the house and tosses the keys on the table; she walks into the living room where her parents are sitting.

"Hello _family._" Charlotte basically shouts

Her parents' heads shoot up and look at Charlotte "Don't look surprised, you look like you just saw a ghost." Charlotte sits on one of the stools at the island.

"Charlotte, look at you, you're so grown up!" Her mother tries to show enthusiasm and interest in her daughter

"Yeah, shocking right? Who would have thought that I would grow within the time span of five years?" Charlotte is furious but trying extremely hard to keep her cool, one of the things she learned in her mandatory Anger Management classes. "You didn't think to at least let me know that you weren't going to be here when I told you a month ago I was coming home? Or to at least tell Spencer I was coming? She basically had a heart attack when I walked through the door."

Her mother and father both stare at her and stay silent

"Are you going to say anything?" Charlotte jumps off the stool "Or are you going to stand there like a couple of brain dead idiots?" Her father stands up off the couch

"You cannot speak to your mother like that!"

"Really? Because she has said a lot worse to me! Where were you to defend me?" Charlotte runs upstairs and slams the door. No wonder she hasn't made much contact with her parents since she got sent away, because they can barely be in the same room as one another or else Charlotte gets furious thinking about what they did to her, where they sent her.

About twenty minutes later Charlotte walks back downstairs hoping her parents left. They are still in the living room but instead of sitting on their separate couches they are standing by the fireplace whispering about something.

_They're probably going to send me to the mental hospital…_

"It's okay, I know you're talking about me, you can say whatever you want, and I honestly don't care what you think about me. You're nothing to me."

"HEY! Watch the attitude kid; you'll be out on your ass!" Her father starts yelling at her again. Charlotte looks at her mother again.

"Shocker, you have nothing to say, as always. Do you even realize what you did? How messed up I am? I can barely sleep at night. This is your fault!"

"I didn't raise you to speak to your mother this way!"

"You didn't _raise _me at all! You don't even know me! I'm not your daughter!"

"You're right." Her mother speaks for the first time since Charlotte has been home.

"What?" Charlotte walks over to her mother

"He isn't your father. You're right." Charlotte has a single tear run down her face

"Why else do you think we sent you away? I can barely stand to look at you; you're just a reminder of my biggest mistake, the result of one my worst decisions. You disgust me."


	10. Authors Note numero tres

**Authors Note…**

** Hey y'all so I decided that I will work my butt off for you if you do a little favor for me. I will write two new chapters by tomorrow night, IF most of you review for the last chapter. I need some inspiration and I am counting on you. Review and I'll post, sound like a fair deal? Thanks! You guys are the best!**

**~Carter V.**


	11. Illegitimate

**So I find this story taking a sad turn, that's okay though, this story will start looking up again soon, I promise. Chapter eight is here! Also, I am so sorry that it took so long, damn writers block! :P**

**I own nothing but Charlotte**

**~Carter V.**

**Also thank you all so much for the reviews! You guys are the BEST!  
><strong>

Charlotte runs outside and jumps into Spencer's car. She peels out of the driveway and heads for the high school. She bursts into the front office.

"I need to speak to Spencer Hastings! It's a family emergency." The woman at the front desk rolls her eyes and presses the button on the intercom "Spencer Hastings please report to the front office, Spencer Hastings to the front office." Charlotte starts breathing really heavy and starts pacing back and forth. After a few minutes Spencer walks into the office expecting to see her parents or even a cop, but she did not expect to see her sister. Fear strikes through her entire body and she rushes up to Charlotte. "Hey what's going on?" Spencer grabs Charlottes arm and pulls her into the entry way so they can be alone. Charlotte doesn't say anything but she just starts sobbing and Spencer pulls her into a hug. She pushes the hair out of Charlottes face and makes eye contact with her. "Hey, what's going on?" She says in a calming voice while she is still hugging her sister. She has never seen her sister this upset. Ever.

"Mom… dad…they…I'm not…" Charlotte is breathing extremely heavy and fast. Spencer has a confused look on her face "You have to calm down" Spencer is rubbing small circles on Charlottes back to calm her down "you're going to hyperventilate. Mom and dad, what did they do? You aren't what?" Charlotte sits down on the floor and she starts to calm down a little bit. "Dad isn't my father, I'm not his daughter." Spencer's face goes blank and she sits down next to Charlotte

"What do you mean? How did you find this out?" Spencer is still trying to understand what Charlotte told her

"When I got back to the house mom and dad were there. As always we got into this huge fight and mom told me that dad isn't _my_ dad." Charlotte has silent tears rolling down her cheeks. "I didn't know what to do so I came here. I can't go back there, not now." Spencer puts her arm around her younger sister and thinks for a few minutes. "I can dismiss myself and we can go somewhere else if you want" Charlotte shakes her head

"No, you should stay I don't want you to miss class. I'll just go for a walk or something."  
>"I don't think you should be alone right now… I have an idea, come with me." Spencer grabs her hand and drags her down the hallways of Rosewood High. She knocks on the door of Ella's classroom. "Hi, Mrs. Montgomery I was just wondering if Charlotte could hang out here until the end of the day?"<p>

Ella looks confused and pauses for a minute "Umm, sure. I guess." Charlotte looks extremely embarrassed and walks to the back of the empty classroom and sits at one of the student desks. Spencer goes back to class and Ella and Charlotte are alone in an awkward silence. "So is something wrong?" Charlotte looks across the room and shrugs

"No why?" Ella walks across the room and sits on the desk

"Sweetie you are really good at a lot of things, but lying isn't one of them. It's written all over your face. What's wrong?" Charlotte doesn't say anything but a single tear rolls down her cheek and she turns and wipes it away trying to hide it from Ella. "Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry. Don't cry I didn't mean to make you cry." She hugs her

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to cry."

"We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. We can ju-"

"My mom cheated on my dad. I'm her _love child_." Ella has no idea what to say she just hugs Charlotte again in hopes to comfort her. "That's why I'm here, I didn't know where else to go. I can't face my parents, not now."

"You're welcome to stay with us for a few days while you cool down. You can bunk with Aria."

"No really you don't have to do that. I don't want to put you and Mr. Montgomery out."

"Sweetie, I insist I don't really want you or Spencer in that environment right now, you girls can go home after school and grab some of your things and stay with us for the weekend. I'll talk to your mother." The bell rings and it's time for Ella's last block class. "Take a seat you can take part in class today, if you want." Charlotte smiles huge, she has never had anyone try to include her as much as Ella has. She sits in the back corner and grabs a Lit book.

After class Charlotte finds the girls in the hall.

"Charlotte, look at you!" Emily walks up to Charlotte and hugs her and Hanna does the same. Charlotte smiles and looks at Spencer and Aria "Hey, Spence we're bunking at the Montgomery's for a few days. Mrs. Montgomery is looking for you guys."

"Why? What's going on?" Aria looks at Charlotte

"It's a long story."


	12. Sick

**Chapter nine What did you guys think of chapter eight? I'm always looking for some ideas for the story and opinions are always welcome, criticism will only make me better. Also, I am so sorry for how long this chapter has taken to be put up. I am trying so hard to think of good ideas to keep this story going.**

**Once again I own nothing except Charlotte  
>~Carter V.<strong>

Later that night at the dinner table, everyone is sitting in silence and Charlotte is trying to pull herself together in front of Mike and Byron.

"Aria, sweetie will you pass the salad?" Trying to break the silence

"Sure." Aria hands her mom the bowl. Mike looks over at Charlotte and tries to make eye contact with her, still having no idea what's going on. Charlotte looks at him and then looks back down at her hands in her lap fiddling with her napkin.

Byron, blissfully unaware asks "So, how was everyone's day?" A tear escapes Charlotte's eye and she whisks it away quickly

"May I be excused, please?" Charlotte gets up and goes into the kitchen.

Mike and Byron make eye contact. Spencer throws her napkin on her chair as she gets up and follows her sister into the kitchen. "Hey, c'mere" Spencer pulls Charlotte into a hug. "Are you okay?" Charlotte just shakes her head 'no'.

"I would say I want to go home, but that's hell. I would say I want to go back to school, but that's hell."

"What's wrong with staying here?"

"Are you kidding? I can't face Mike like this. Crying and… emotional. I'm gross." More tears fall down Charlotte's cheeks "I don't know why I'm even that upset, it's not like I'm losing any great prize. Mom and "dad" were awful to me anyway."

Ella walks into the kitchen "Is everything okay?" Charlotte is still crying and Spencer is rubbing circles on Charlotte's back.

"Yup, everything's fine." Charlotte wipes her tears away and starts to walk out of the room.

"Hold it." Charlotte walks back to Ella "You don't have to pretend that everything is okay. You don't have to lie to me. You can tell me anything." She hands her a tissue.

"Thank you. I'm going to go upstairs for a little while." Charlotte goes upstairs and Mike is standing in the doorway of his bedroom.

"Hey, can we talk?" Charlotte stops in front of the door to Aria's room.

"Umm… can it wait? I'm not feeling too well."

"Are you mad at me?" Mike looks at Charlotte concerned and a little confused

"Oh sweetie no, of course not, I really am just not feeling well. I'm going to go lay down. We'll talk later?"

"Sure thing" Mike kisses her and they go to their separate bedrooms.

Meanwhile downstairs Spencer walks into the living room and sits on the couch next to Aria. Aria looks at Spencer "hey is she okay?" She picks up her chemistry book.

"No." There is a long pause "I just don't know what to do for her. This is kind of new territory for us." Spencer looks at Aria and grabs her books.

"I'm sorry this happened to you guys. This really sucks."

"Yeah, you're telling me. I've never seen her like this. I have never seen her cry. She broke her arm once, and she didn't even cry then… and I'm trying to be there for her and…" Spencer starts crying. "…and of course I want to be supportive. She's my baby sister, but then what about my parents?"

"Shh…" Aria pulls Spencer into another hug "I know it's a lot to take in and a lot to handle on your own." Aria stops and thinks for a minute "But you know what? You aren't alone; you've got me, my mom. But honestly, you two are the strongest people I know."

Spencer laughs a little and wipes away her tears "I have to go talk to her."

"Hey, leave her alone. I'm sure she needs a little time to cool off and think."  
>"Yeah… you're probably right." Spencer bites her bottom lip and sits back on the couch.<p>

Later that night Aria, Spencer and Charlotte are all in Aria's room Spencer and Aria are skyping with Emily who is visiting her parents in Texas. Charlotte is sitting on the floor where she has been for four hours and hasn't said a word. Mike knocks on the door and Aria opens it. "Can I talk to Charlotte?" Aria looks over at Charlotte who is basically comatose and taps her

"Hmm?" Charlotte looks at Mike and stands up and follows him into his room

"Okay, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?"

"You've been really weird today. Are you really here because your house is being fumigated?"

"Yeah" There is a long pause and Charlotte contemplates telling Mike the truth. "No. I'm here because… my parents told me that my dad isn't my _real _father." Charlotte looks down and Mike grabs her and pulls her into a huge hug. They pull apart and Charlotte pulls Mike into a kiss. The kiss turns deeper and deeper until they hear someone clear their throat. They turn to see Ella.

"Hey kids," There is an awkward silence and Charlotte and Mike separate a little further "Charlie sweetie can I talk to you downstairs?"

"Sure Mrs. Montgomery."

Down in the kitchen Ella sits Charlotte down at the counter "Your mother called." Charlotte rolls her eyes

"What did she say?" Charlotte starts fiddling with a napkin that is sitting on the counter in front of her

"She said that she would like to speak with you and your sister. She asked if she could see you tomorrow. I told her that if you were okay to see her, then it was okay."

"Oh, that's all?" Ella shakes her head yes and takes Charlotte's hand in hers

"Are you ready to see her?"

"No, but I probably should. But I don't think I'm ready. What they did was awful, they lied… for sixteen years. How could they do that?"

"Oh sweetheart, you know I'm on your side in all this, but sometimes parents hide things from their children to protect them."

"Yeah, sometimes telling the truth does more harm than good. But I don't think forgiving her will be that easy this time."

"This time?"

"Forget it." Charlotte goes upstairs and Spencer and Aria are already in bed. She sits and thinks about _everything. _She grabs her toothbrush and goes to the bathroom and sits in front of the toilet and sticks the back end of it down her throat. Ten minutes later she gets up and drinks a cup of water and walks out of the bathroom to see Aria standing on the other side of the door. She looks down at the toothbrush in her hand.

"Please don't tell."


	13. Manipulative

**Hi guys, so I am sooooooooo sorry that it has taken me way too long to update. My computer was stolen so I wasn't really able to get to a computer too often to write and when I could it was mostly school stuff. But I should be getting a new laptop sometime this week, I hope and then I should be updating a lot more often. I am also starting a One Tree Hill fic which is mostly written and then I will be updating on here so if you are a fan of the show definitely read. I hope you like the new chapter, I know it's short but It is worth I promise I will hopefully have another chapter up in the next few days. Keep faith in me! I promise I haven't forgotten about y'all. Thanks for all of your reviews, you guys are the best! Without any further delay here is chapter 10.**

**(Obviously I don't own the show or anything except Charlotte… blah, blah, blah. You guys already know that.)**

**~Carter V.**

_**Manipulative**_

"Please don't tell" Charlotte turns the other way and walks down the creaky wooden stairs and out the heavy matching wooden door. Arias sighs and turns the opposite direction towards her bedroom where Spencer is half awake

"Is everything okay?" She looks up at Aria who looks terrified and confused

"Yeah sure, go back to sleep."

The next morning everyone is sitting down to breakfast and Charlotte walks through the front door worried they'll know she'd been out all night.

"Hey where were you so early?" Ella asks

"Just out for a walk. It's so nice outside today." Charlotte looks across the room at Aria and looks away quickly.

Ella puts a plate of eggs on the table

"How about you sit down and have some breakfast."

"No thanks, I'm not hungry." She runs upstairs and gets in the shower. When she gets out she realizes today is the day her mom wanted to see her and Spencer. She runs to the toilet and gets sick again. This time not on purpose, it was truly a stress reaction.

_**I can't face her. She's a liar.**_

There is a sudden knock on the door.

"Charlotte?" She hears Aria's voice from the other side. She wipes her mouth

"Yeah?" She opens the door. Aria hands her a plate of dry toast. "Thanks, but I can't eat that." Aria drags Charlotte across the hall and into her bedroom

"Why are you doing this to yourself?"

"Doing what?" Charlotte is starting to get angry, but not so much at Aria, because she couldn't deny that she was right.

"Starving yourself, making yourself sick. This isn't healthy, why are you doing this to yourself?"

"I don't want to talk about this now." Charlotte gets up to leave and Aria pulls her back down on to the bed before she could get very far.

"We have to!" Aria yells and Charlotte whips her head around to be face to face with the older girl.

"I don't have to do anything! Why do you even care? Last time I checked nobody else does."

Aria adjusts herself more sideways to be at a comfortable, stand-offish distance from Charlotte "Are you kidding me? You have a band of people who care about you. Me, my brother, Spencer, Right now, I think you're just too blind to admit it to yourself. You just have to stop shutting us out and let us help you. Or else…" Aria trails off

"'Or else' what?" Charlotte starts to look a bit nervous

"I don't know, but maybe something bad. But let's stop it before it gets there, okay?"

Aria leaves the plate of toast on the desk. Charlotte stays sitting on the bed and she stares at the plate. She walks over, picks up a piece and then stares at it for a moment before dropping it into the trash can. She grabs her bag and walks into Mike's room.

"Hey babe" Mike wraps his arms around her neck while her arms fall gently around his waist. "You okay?"

"Yeah Sure, why?"

"I don't know" he shrugs "You just look a little pale is all."

"Hey Char! Bandwagon's leaving!" Spencer yells from the bottom of the stairs. Charlotte releases her iron grip from around Mike and starts to head out the door

"Time to see mommy dearest." She walks back one more time to kiss Mike

"Good luck. Call me if you need anything." He puts a hand on her shoulder and she begins to walk away.

"My knight in shining armor!" She clasps her hands over her heart

"Sarcasm does not become you." Charlotte smirks and runs downstairs to meet Spencer at the front door.

"Ready?" Spencer puts an arm around her younger sister's should, a little awkwardly because she is taller than her

"No." The two sisters walk reluctantly, to say the least, out the door and to the car.

The car ride to the Rosewood Grille was silent. Charlotte couldn't stop the flow of negative thoughts racing through her brain. Spencer drove a little slower than she usually did. It was like a train of cars following a hearse. Spencer pulls into a parking space near the side entrance.

"Ready?"

"As I'll ever be"

They walk over to the table where their mother is sitting. As they approach the table, their mother stands up and goes to hug them. Charlotte walks around her and takes a seat in one of the wooden chairs. After they were seated a waitress comes over.

"Good Afternoon ladies, can I take your order."

"Oh, just water please; I don't think we'll be staying long." Charlotte signals to herself and Spencer. She waits until the waitress leaves. "What do you want? What could you possibly have to say?"

"I wanted to apologize."

"I would say it's a little late for that, wouldn't you?"

"I don't blame you for being mad, both of you. I think separation is good for us, for a while. Charlotte you can stay at the Montgomery's until you go back to school."

"About that…"

"What?" Their mother's eyes narrowed, recognizing the tone in her youngest daughter's voice

"I'm not going back."

"Like hell you're not." Charlotte leans across the table and speaks quietly to her mother

"It's either I stay in Rosewood or I go back everyone finds out your secrets, _mother._ _You pick._" Charlotte's last three words burn through her mother's brain like someone is putting out a cigarette on it.

"Fine, you can stay." Charlotte knows what appearances mean to her mother

"Okay, well I think we're done here." Charlotte gets up to leave but her mother's words and acidic tone stop her

"Don't bother coming back to the house though, you of all people should know where you're not welcome.

"Wasn't planning on it." Charlotte doesn't turn back to look at her mother and continues to walk out the door.

The girls begin driving back to the Montgomery's home in Spencer's black SUV.

"Welcome home sis." Spencer places a gentle hand on her shoulder. Charlotte traces her finger up and down, along her scar.

"Great to be here."


	14. Stubborn

**So, I finally got a laptop and I can start thinking about writing again now that I am settled into school and everything. I know it has been soooo long since I have written for this story. I honestly didn't think anyone was still interested in this story and that is totally my fault, but I got a lovely review that let me know differently. So here is my best attempt at getting myself back into the mindset of Charlotte Hastings…Thanks for keeping the faith guys!**

** ~C.V.**

It has been two weeks since Charlotte had the talk with her mother and thirteen days since she saw or spoke to her. She moved all of her stuff out of her parent's house and is now residing with the Montgomery family. This of course makes this exponentially easier on her and Mike's relationship. They are sitting at the kitchen island doing their homework when Spencer and Aria walk into the house. They are being weird and secretive again, like usual. Charlotte knows something is up with them but she doesn't know what yet, but she fully intends to find out what they are always whispering about. Mike takes her gently out of her internal dialogue with a gentle kiss on her neck.

"Want to, uh, go upstairs?" He asks with a smirk and looks to the staircase with his beautiful hazel eyes.

"Are you crazy? Our sisters are here." She kisses him back and focuses back on her AP Chemistry book

"We can be quiet, they won't even notice." Charlotte gives him a skeptical look but she couldn't say she wasn't intrigued. She stands up slowly, and she decides to go against her better judgment and they go up to his bedroom. They lay next to one another on his bed and wait a few minutes just to make sure that the girls don't follow them. They decide that it is clear and he leans over her tiny, and growing tinier frame, and starts to kiss down her neck. She closes her eyes and she thinks of how wonderful he is and how happy she is that she was able to black mail her own mother into letting her stay in Rosewood. Mike starts to undo the buttons on her cardigan and she realizes that his shirt is already off. She complies with his actions and their clothes start coming off faster and faster.

He is just about to start when there is a knock at the door and it opens swiftly. Aria and Spencer are standing in the doorway in complete and utter shock. Mike jumps up and starts grabbing his clothes and yelling at Aria to get out of his room and Charlotte covers herself with a blanket. The girls leave as quickly as possible and Charlotte is completely embarrassed. They get dressed and sit in his room on opposite sides, him on the bed and her in a chair, staring at one another.

"So what do we do now?" She asks as she plays with the sleeves of her sweater

"Um, I don't know." There is a slight giggle in his voice

"This isn't funny Mike, you know my sister, she is probably pissed."

"C'mon Char, she isn't your mom, and besides we didn't even do anything." He walks over to her and kisses her cheek. He looks her in the eye and grabs her hand. He drags her down the stairs and back into the kitchen where Aria and Spencer are cooking dinner.

"You guys are lucky I wasn't mom." Aria says not looking up from the stove

"She isn't going to be home until late, there was no chance of that happening." Mike says while grabbing a piece of uncooked pasta and biting into it, a strange habit he has. Charlotte makes eye contact with Spencer, her older sister raising an eyebrow. A clear cut sign that she was not pleased with her little sister's actions.

"I'm sorry Spence." Spencer nods, knowing what a rough time she has been having lately, she is allowed to have a few mistakes. Besides, she wasn't her mother or even her guardian so who is she to stop them.

The rest of the night was filled with awkward conversation, especially when they all sat down at the dinner table together. The awkwardness was broken when Emily and Hanna came over and all the girls disappeared up into Aria's room. Mike and Charlotte decided that the living room was a safer, more innocent place for them to hang out.

"Hey, are you okay?" Mike asks as he plays with Charlottes fingers, another strange and yet endearing trait he has

"Yeah, I'm fine why?"

"You didn't eat much at dinner, and you're a bit shaky." He places his hand on her forehead "Are you sick?"

"No, babe, I'm fine. Don't you worry about me. It's getting kind of late; shouldn't you be going to bed? You have an early game tomorrow. You should get some rest." She smiles her warm smile at him and he is still not completely convinced but knows how stubborn the Hastings girls are and drops it, for now. He kisses her one more time and goes upstairs to bed, but before he goes he says

"I won't sleep as well as I would if you were next to me."


	15. Rejected

**Hey guys so this is REALLY short and I'm sorry, I just wanted to get something to you guys. I have just been swamped with homework and trying to have a social life of some kind. Anyway, I would really appreciate it if you would check out my other story, and to make it super easy here is a link to it: ** s/8529403/1/Looking-at-what-we-had-compared-to-what-we-have  
>So there you go: please check it out, even though it is a future fic, I have full intentions of bring Mike and Charlotte into the new ones as adults, so if you like this one you will hopefully like this one too. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing you guys are seriously the best readers a girl could ask for! Thank you so so so much! And enjoy this Chapter<p>

**Rejected**

The next morning, Charlotte wakes up early to have breakfast with Mike before his game. She sees him off before going upstairs to get ready to go watch his game. This is a new weekend ritual. She goes to the field an hour or so later and gets a seat on the cold, hard, metal bleachers and opens her sketchpad. She starts drawing the outside landscape when she is joined on the bench… by her 'father'.

"Hello Charlotte." He says as he sits beside her

"What are you doing here?" She doesn't look at him, she keeps her eyes fixated on Mike, hoping he'll turn around and notice her situation.

"I wanted to see if you were alright.'

"I'm fine." She states simply and then decides that is not enough "You know, why do you care now? We both know that I'm not yours, you're off the hook. Dodged the bullet you thought you would have to live with for the rest of your life. You didn't care how I was when I spent every night at boarding school crying myself to sleep, why the hell do you care now?" She looks at him for the first time since he sat down.

"I'm just happy to see you're okay." He says as he places a hand on her knee and then gets up and leaves the way he came. She watches after him until he is out of sight and then she focuses back on her sketchpad until the games starting whistle sounds.

Mike blazes the field and their team wins like it was no problem at all. Charlotte waits for him to appear, showered and dressed out of the locker room. He runs up to her, hugs her and picks her up and spins her around. They kiss briefly

"Good game babe!" She hugs his neck again and he grabs her hand as they exit the school to his car.

"So what was your dad doing here?"

"Oh you did see that?" She lets out an awkward giggle "he said he was checking up on me."

"Are you okay?" She nods her head and gets into the passenger side of the car

"Actually, not really. I mean, I don't know why it bothers me so much, we were never close, I never really viewed any of them as family, except Spencer and even now I think we might be growing distant because I can't put her in a situation where she can't go home either. It's just a huge mess." He grabs her hand and kisses her cheek

"You just have to give it some time, cool off. Talk to your sister, don't let her get distant, you don't want to lose her over a stupid mistake your mom made, right." She puts his finger under her chin and turns her face towards him "Hey, it's gonna be okay."

"Thank you." She lets out a half smile "So I was thinking about yesterday…"

"Yeah?" Mike gets a cocky smile on his face

"Yeah. I think we should wait. Make it special, you know?" He looks at her and his smile fades for a minute and then reappears

"I think that is a fantastic idea."


	16. Trying

**Ahh! I am so sorry I have been so absent for so long but you know how it is, life gets in the way of the things you want to do… but it is summer and I should hopefully have time to be updated a lot. Thank you all for your support and for everybody who has decided to stick with me you deserve all the awards! Seriously, you guys are the best and I thank you all very much for you follows/favorites and reviews, y'all rock! So without any further ado, here is the next chapter. I know it's short but it's all I have right now. **

**Trying**

That next day, Sunday, Charlotte had called Spencer to see if they could meet up. She wanted to clear up some things and see if their relationship could go back to normal. Spencer pulls up in front of the Montgomery's home, which had recently become the dwelling of her younger sister. She puts her car in park and sighs deeply. She couldn't deny how much had changed in her life recently and she was starting to realize she was completely unsure of what to do about any of it. She gets out of the car slowly and walks up the front walkway to the front door. Before she could knock, Ella opens it.

"Oh, hi Spencer!" She is surprised to see her standing there

"Hi Mrs. Montgomery"

"Aria is in the kitchen." She says passing, clearly in a rush

Spencer walks into the house and walks into the kitchen to find Aria with a cup of coffee and a book, not surprising for her on a Sunday.

"Hey"

"Hey Spence" Aria puts her book down "What's up?"

"Just here to pick up Charlotte, we're going to grab breakfast" Spencer does not seem happy

"Is that a bad thing?"

"…No? I don't think so. It's just things have been really tense lately."

"Well, isn't that normal? I mean you guys haven't seen each other in years and now all of a sudden you're in each other's lives again. Not to mention all the stuff with your parents… I'm glad you guys are going to hang out, and to breakfast of all things. Make sure she eats something." This sparks Spencer's attention  
>"Why? Has she not been eating? Is something going on?" Aria's eyes widen, she did not mean to say anything, she promised.<p>

Before she could say anything Charlotte walks into the kitchen.

"Oh hey Spence. I didn't know you were here yet." Charlotte says while putting her coat on.

"You said 9 right?"

"Oh yeah I did." Aria couldn't help but smirk at the awkward moment the sisters were having "So, uh, ready?" Spencer nods and they start towards the door

"Have fun you two." Aria opens her book again and returns to e.e. Cummings hoping Spencer doesn't pursue anything based on her comment

When the girls arrive at the small diner just outside of Rosewood they both sit on either side of the red leather booth. The place seems strangely familiar to Charlotte but she can't seem to place why. They order black coffee and sit in a heavy silence for a minute.

"I'm sorry." They both blurt out at the same time and then share soft chuckles

"What are you sorry for?" Charlotte asks Spencer while taking a sip out of her steaming cup

"I don't know, things have been weird lately, uncomfortable…" Spencer pauses searching for the right word

"Distant?" Charlotte chimes in, as she pushes around the scrambled eggs the waitress had just put in front of her

"Exactly, I don't want anything to happen to us. Screw mom and dad, I just got you back and I won't let them come between us again." Spencer has a fire in her eyes, the usual determination standing behind them. "We are old enough now to make our own decisions."

Charlotte nods her head "Exactly. I went way too long without any family, now I finally have one and I will be damned sure that it doesn't slip away."

FLASHBACK-

Charlotte sneaks out of her dorm room at the Academy and creeps in her bare feet down the dimly lit hallway. She looks into every doorway to make sure no one spots her. She reaches the phone placed on a table at the end of the hall. She picks it up as quietly as possible and slips into the closet next to it. She dials her number carefully in the dark, it rings harshly into her ear five or six times and she waits for someone, _anyone_ to answer. No such luck.

"Hello, you've reached the Hastings; Peter, Veronica, Melissa and Spencer. Leave us a message with your name and number and we will be sure to get back to you as soon as possible." She heard her father's voice narrate through the messaging machine. Her name _very_ apparently missing from the line-up. "Beeeep." She doesn't say anything into the machine she just keeps the phone up to her ear and sobs into the receiver. After a minute or so, she slams the phone down and leaves it on the floor and starts back towards her room. She hears a couple of people coming down the adjacent hallway and she slips back into her room, leaving the door open a crack to hear what they are saying.

"Yeah, the family seems pretty shady to me. They paid extra to keep her in a room all to herself. They say that they think her anger makes her dangerous and insist that she go to management counseling but she scored normal in all the testing. The mother seemed pretty adamant about her coming here though." One woman, a therapist Charlotte recognized from around her building, says to another woman as they walk passed her room. She shuts the door the rest of the way, as quietly as possible. She goes over to her bed and looks at her nearly empty room, and stuffs her face into her pillow and starts to cry again until she finally drops off into sleep.

END OF FLASHBACK-

After breakfast the girls get back into Spencer's car and begin to drive back towards town. Spencer, sitting in silence, thinking that she had wished she looked at her sister's plate. Aria's comment was playing in her mind again, until Charlotte's voice breaks her concentration

"So where do _they _think you are?" she placed a disgusted emphasis on the word

"A study group." Spencer shrugs, hating the fact that she had to lie about going to see her own sister. Charlotte just nods, and looks down at her shaking hands. Knowing that everything destructive that she was doing to herself had to stop, she needed to take care of herself, so she could begin to take care of Spencer. It is apparent that neither of them have had anyone to take care of them for a very long time.

"I'm sorry Spence."

Spencer smirks a little as she pushes her hair behind her ear "You already apologized Char."

"I know, I'm just really sorry."


	17. Tired

**This is a very, very short chapter. But I figured a little tiny something is better than a whole lot of nothing. I should be updating another chapter after this one within the next few days, work has owned my soul recently but I will be working on it whenever I get a chance. So here is chapter 14 for y'all, hope you enjoy it.**

**Tired**

The next day Charlotte woke up to her alarm clock, cursing the fact that she had stayed up so late the night before working on yet another paper. All of the honors classes she was in were starting to take a toll, her energy levels were declining rapidly and she felt nauseous or achy or sick almost all of the time. She pulled herself out of bed and made her way into the hallway, just in time to meet Mike who had just gotten out of the shower.

"Morning, sleepy head." He greets her with a crooked grin and he uses a second towel to wipe the water from his hair.

"Well this is just not fair." She signals to him standing in just a towel, his perfectly sculpted abs exposed and his eyes glistening in the sunlight the morning was offering. He answers with a simple scoff. She wavers slightly in her stance as she endures her first rush of nausea. Mike's smile disappears immediately as he grabs onto her arm

"Are you okay?" He pulls her into him and kisses her forehead "You feel warm. Maybe you should skip school today?"

"Mike, I'm fine." She looks up at him, knowing that he is only looking out for her but still getting frustrated at him trying to tell her what to do. "Besides I have a paper due today…"

"I can hand it in for you, if you're sick-"

"I said I'm fine." She snaps at him as she walks past him and into the bathroom. Mike stands slightly stunned, never knowing Charlotte to act like that

"What was that?" Aria asks from her doorway

"I-I have no idea…"

"She's probably just tired; she was up pretty late working on that paper."

"Yeah…" Mike tries to push it off and listen to his sister but he knows that Charlotte never acts like this and something else must be going on, he has a gut feeling that he has had for a few days now, and he can't quite figure out what it is yet… and he is a little scared to confront her, especially with her mood swings. Charlotte starts the shower, and waits for it to get as hot as she can stand and then steps underneath water, taking a sharp inhale as the water hits her skin. She turns to grab the soap but before she can get her hand on it, her vision blurs and the next thing she knows she is heading towards the shower floor and then there is nothing but darkness.

Mike and Aria, a few minutes later are once again standing in the hallway when they hear a loud bang coming from the bathroom. They run up to the door

"Charlotte! You okay?" Aria shouts but when there is no response, Mike busts the door open and they find her laying on the floor, blood rushing from her head and her unconscious body over the side of the tub portion of the shower. Aria shuts off the water as Mike grabs a towel to wrap around her limp body.

"I'm going to run and grab her some clothes and you need to call 911 okay?" Aria says trying to remain calm, Mike just stays in his same position with Charlotte in his lap and his eyes fixated on the bloody mess on her forehead "Mike! Did you hear me?" he nods as he shifts, being careful not to move her too much as he pulls out his phone.

After Aria has gotten her dressed and the ambulance arrives and they follow it to the hospital, calling their mother and Spencer along the way. They arrive at the hospital but are forced to wait in the waiting room.

"Aria?!" Spencer runs into the small waiting room "Where is she? Is she okay? What happened?" Spencer is flushed and there is nothing but panic in her eyes and her gaze shifts between Mike and Aria, waiting for them to say something but not giving them a chance as she spews question after question at them.

"Spence… Spence, calm down." Aria's attempts to soothe her best friend are useless "We don't know what happened; no one will tell us because we aren't family."

"She fainted in the shower, that's all we know" Mike chimes in, his voice distant and dejected.

At this moment, a doctor emerges from the large double doors to the emergency room.

"Are you the family of Charlotte Hastings?" The older man asks Spencer, noting the new arrival, and her flustered appearance. Spencer nods, unable to speak at first. Blinking back tears she moves closer to him and she clears her throat

"H-how is she?"

"Well…"

**I know, I know, classic cliffhanger but I had to. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens to Charlotte, because let's face it, I haven't even decided yet… maybe you guys could review and sway me in one direction or the other. Hmm… **

**Til next time guys,  
>Carter V.<strong>


	18. Unwell

**I didn't want to keep you guys waiting for too long, so I figured I would post this chapter today. There is no "Charke" in this chapter but there is plenty of that coming up soon! So I hope you enjoy this, and thank you for your wonderful reviews and kind words, it means a lot to me, and they just make me want to write more, and I think I have gotten a swing back for writing this and I have a few ideas and tricks up my sleeve. So Enjoy!**

**Unwell**

Charlotte wakes up in the dimly lit hospital room. Her head is splitting and her throat is dry. There is a rhythmic beeping coming from the machines beside her and she tries to bring herself to lift her head. When she finally finds her strength she realizes someone is sleeping in the chair next to her… the one someone she did not expect to see there; _her mother. _

"Mom?" her voice is raspy, her mother is pulled from her rather restless sleep

"Charlotte? Thank goodness you're alright." She rises from her chair and sits on the edge of her bed

"What are you doing here?" Char's voice is not angry; she can't seem to muster any emotions other than confused. "Where's dad?" she looks around as much as possible.

"He is out in the waiting room with your sisters. You gave us quite a scare, you know that?" Charlotte doesn't answer her mother, she just stares at her. She looks into her eyes and realizes that there is actual fear inside them. She opens her mouth to speak again, but is interrupted before she is able to

"Charlotte. Thank God you're okay." Her father rushes to her other side and joins the two on the bed. "How are you feeling? Can I get you anything?" He is nearly frantic but trying to conceal it. He gently brushes a few stray hairs behind her left ear

"No, I'm okay…" She waits before asking her next question "Seriously, what are you guys doing here?" She looks between the two; not sure whether she should be happy they are there or not.

"Well," her mother starts "Because, if we didn't come, who would? Besides we don't want to have to deal with any legal repercussions that could come from this. You don't think we'd risk that do you?" her mother asks this harsh, rhetorical question

"You don't think we would be here unless we had to right?" her father's voice had a menacing, mocking tone to it, and they both share a chuckle before gathering their things and leaving the room.

"Wait! Where are you going? Come back! Don't leave me again!" Charlotte's voice becomes softer and softer as she tries to yell after her parents, until she is jostled awake by an, at-first, unrecognizable voice

"Char! Char, wake up! It's okay." She is pulled into the arms of someone; she doesn't know who it is at first, until she recognizes the smell of their perfume.

"Aria?" She is released from her hold, she squints her eyes as a sharp pain unlike anything she has ever felt before shoots through her skull and blurs her vision for a moment. She tries to catch her breath, but she finds she can't take any deep breaths, as a similar pain shoots through her left side. "What's going on? Where are my parents?" She is disoriented from her dream, that she could have sworn was real. "Where's Spencer?" Her speech is slurred and she finds that speaking is rather difficult.

Aria runs a gentle hand through her hair, "Spence just went to grab some coffee, and you're parents…" Aria trails off, not knowing what to say to that, or why Charlotte was asking for them in the first place.

"Right. I just… forgot for a minute." Charlotte's voice is raspy and tired sounding. She sniffs, she finds that she has a runny nose and her ears feel blocked or filled, and that she can't hear that well. She looks up at the clock to see it reads 5:34 PM "I've been asleep for that long?" She is in disbelief

"We were really worried about you, you know that?" Spencer's voice sounds from the door way, as she enters holding two to-go cups and hands one to Aria as she joins her sister on the bed. "How are you feeling?" The concern in her older sister's eyes makes up for the lack of concern from her parents. Charlotte just shrugs slightly, not wanting to admit just how bad she feels.

"Charlotte Hastings." A young, male doctor announces as he walks briskly into the room. Aria slips out, not wanting to intrude or be in the way "I'm glad to see you're awake. How are you feeling? Pretty bad I'm guessing." He gives a half smile as he begins to check her vital signs

"Well, I can honestly say I've felt better."

Dr. Hopkins scoffs "Yeah, I bet." He looks at Spencer "You're family?"

"She's my big sister." Her speech is getting more difficult to decipher. Spencer gives her a look of confusion but Charlotte doesn't notice, as a wave nausea overcomes her and she grabs her sister's hand.

"Alright, Charlotte, I'm just going to do some simple verbal tests with you and check a few things out okay?" Charlotte nods slightly, not wanting to initiate any more shooting pains, but not wanting to speak more than she has to. "Okay, can you tell me your full name?"

"Charlotte Elizabeth Hastings." She says confidently knowing the answer

"Good, and can you tell me what day it is?" A wave of panic flashes through her eyes as she realizes that she has no idea what day it is "It's okay." Dr. Hopkins encourages her, not wanting to scare her. "Can you tell me what happened? How you hurt yourself?" She shifts in her spot on the bed, she has no idea how she ended up in the hospital, she couldn't remember anything after last night. She shakes her head and looks down at her hands. "That's okay. We'll check back a little later. Okay?" He looks for affirmation from her before signaling Spencer over into the hallway.

"Is she going to be okay?" Spencer is trying to keep it all together, in front of the doctor and for Charlotte's sake.

"She is suffering from a moderate brain injury. Her Glasgow scores are less than what I was expecting. She also has three cracked ribs on her left side and she is anemic." Spencer shudders slightly at the amount of damage one fall had done "Has she suffered any stressful events lately? Anything out of the ordinary?" Spencer scoffs slightly, if the situation had been any different she would have laughed

"I guess you could say that."

"What do you mean?" The doctor doesn't want to pry but is intrigued by her answer

"Do you see our parents here? The girl was in a coma, and her own parents didn't even show up to see if she was okay, didn't that strike you a bit odd?" Spencer looks into the room where her sister remains on the bed "Something tells me that she hasn't been eating very well lately, or sleeping. I think she blames herself for everything, although she'd never admit it out loud." Spencer is taken aback by her answer and looks at the doctor. He tries to hide his own surprise

"Well, we'll keep her on some medication to raise her iron levels back to normal and we'll make sure she gets some nutritional help while she's here. I'd like to keep her here for the rest of the week, just to be safe." Spencer nods as she steals one more glance at her sister

"I'll let her know, thank you doctor." He walks back towards the nurses' station and Spencer goes back to talk to Charlotte, but finds she has fallen asleep again. She decides to let her get her rest and goes into the waiting room. Aria, Mike, Emily and Hanna are all there waiting for her to come out and give them an update. "Hey guys." Emily and Hanna jump right up at the sight of their friend and give her a hug

"How's she doing?" Mike jumps up to but keeps his distance. Aria grabs his arm for support, not knowing what Spencer is going to say, or how he'll react.

"Well, she has a moderate brain injury; her score on the _coma scale" _she pauses for a moment at these two words "were not impressive; they were pretty bad actually. She has a few cracked ribs and they want to keep her here for the week." Spencer's voice is wavering now, trying to keep herself from crying "They think it was her high level of anemia that made her pass out." Spencer looks to Aria who has a twinge of guilt in her eyes.

"But she's going to be okay?" Mike asks, wanting her to get to the point

"Yeah, she'll be fine; over time. Usually with brain injuries there are some cognitive repercussions that could last for a long time, but… nothing too major." With the last part of her sentence there is a voice at the entrance of the waiting room

"Spencer?" The voice is rushed and hurried and panicked

"Mom?"

**Well… there it is! What's going to happen with Veronica? I don't know yet… so it will be a surprise for us all. And did you guys honestly think I would do anything too bad to Charlotte? C'mon you should know me better than that by now. Anyway, keep reviewing and letting me know what you think. **

**See y'all soon,**

**Carter V.**


	19. Hospitalized

**Hey guys, sorry it's taken me a little while but here is the next chapter. It took a little bit more of an angsty turn than I had anticipated but I really like the way it came out. I hope you like it, as usual let me know what you think!**

**~Carter V.**

**Disclaimer: Haven't written one in a while, I do not own the show or its characters, just charlotte and my plot ideas **

**Hospitalized**

"Spencer?" The voice is rushed and hurried and panicked

"Mom?" Veronica rushes over to Spencer and embraces her

"Thank God you're okay. I got a call saying my daughter was being rushed to the ER and I needed to get down here right away, but I was at work and my phone was off." When they separate she assesses Spencer for injury but finds nothing, giving a look of confusion. "Are you alright? You look okay, what happened?" Spencer gives a look to the rest of the group before speaking

"You were thinking of the wrong daughter. It's Charlotte. She's the one that was rushed here." Veronica's eyes drop down to the floor "She's the one that's hurt. _She's_ lying in the bed in there." Spencer's tone is accusatory and her eyes narrow

"Oh." That single word could not hold any more weight than it did at that moment

"Oh?" Spencer scoffs and pulls her mother into the nearby hallway "Is that really all you have to say? You're suddenly not worried because it isn't me that's lying on a gurney? Are you really that ashamed of your own mistake that you have to take it out on her? You can't even look at her without remembering what you did?" Spencer starts to walk away but decides she isn't going to hold back anything anymore; she needs to defend her sister who, at the moment, cannot defend herself. "Just because you can't bring yourself to face what you did, doesn't mean that I can't see my sister, and love her and take care of her, because _someone_ has to. She is in this situation right now because of you, and maybe you should be ashamed, and maybe you should feel horrible. Not because you cheated on your husband, or deceived your family, but because you are too much of a coward to just admit that you're wrong. That you screwed up and because you are forcing everyone_ else_ to pay for your past, including your children." Spencer has hot tears streaming down her cheeks at this point and she can barely look at her mother who still has not removed her gaze from the laminate tile. "So go see her or don't. I don't care, just for once… put her before yourself." Spencer starts to leave again but this time is stopped by her mother's voice

"Do you think she really wants to see me anyway?"

"I wouldn't."

Spencer goes back to the group sitting in their same seats in the waiting room. Aria stands up and wraps her in a protective hug. "Hey, it's okay, it's going to be okay. You were so strong. You did what needed to be done." Spencer wipes the tears away from her eyes and looks at her friends

"You guys don't have to stay. You've done so much already. Go home and get some rest." Hanna and Emily start to protest when their phones ring, their mothers wondering where they are and they leave soon after, promising to come back the next day. Spencer and Aria go to find more coffee and Mike takes the opportunity to go talk to Charlotte.

He walks down the hallway looking into the different rooms, realizing just now that he has no idea what room she is actually in. He gets about half way down the hallway when he sees her lying in a bed, the room dimly lit and machines attached to her on both sides. He quietly walks into the room, unsure whether or not she is awake. He takes a seat in the small wooden chair next to the bed and grabs her hand. When he looks at her face, all he sees is her limp form lying over the edge of the tub, the blood rushing from her head, the ambulance taking her away. He has fear wrenching at his gut as tears threaten the brims of his eyes, stinging as he struggles to hold them back. Charlotte blinks her eyes open at the contact of their hands. She is disoriented at first but the fog clears when she looks into his eyes

"Hey there" she gives a lazy, crooked smile

"Hey yourself" he whispers and leans forward in his chair "How ya feeling buddy?"

"A whole lot better now." She grips his hand tighter "Okay, maybe not, but I am really happy you're here." Her face is so pale and he realizes how small and frail she looks in the bed

"Do you remember what happened?" she shakes her head

"No, I was told that I fell in the shower, but I don't even remember waking up." She shakes her head, immediately regretting the decision as a sharp pain shoots from her forehead down the back of her neck; she takes a sharp inhale and grips his hand even tighter

"You okay?" In an instant he is next to her on the bed "Do you need something? A doctor?" she giggles slightly

"Calm down, I'm fine. I just want you to stay here with me." He nods and shifts his position so he is lying behind her and she is using him as a back and head rest. Her body fits so perfectly with his and she feels safe and warm wrapped in his strong arms, a feeling she can't remember ever feeling, actually it's the opposite of everything she has ever felt. "It really does mean a lot that you're here. You know that right?" He nods against her shoulder

"Yeah I know." His voice is soft but shaky "You know you scared the hell out of me today? The thought of anything happening to you, it physically hurts me. Knowing that you are hurting, that you are sick…" he trails off and she can feel him shaking slightly "It just makes me feel useless." This time his voice is broken and defeated, and it takes Charlotte by surprise

"Are you kidding me? Don't you know I need you more than anything else in this world? Mike, you are the one thing that has been good, the only person who has been solid in my life. Without you, I would have nothing." He smiles knowingly

"Good, so you do understand how I felt today." She elbows him lightly

"Yeah I guess I do then… jerk." She lets out a light giggle, not allowing herself to laugh avoiding the pain in her ribs. Mike runs his hand through her mess of hair, down her neck and arm and back up, they remain like this for a while until she falls back asleep. He slips out from behind her, laying her gently onto the pillows. He glances down at her one more time before leaving the room, bruises starting to form down the left side of her face, the bandage on her forehead bleeding through in the slightest. He flashes back to her body on the floor again as he nearly runs out of the room. He walks back into the waiting room and slaps the wall out of anger.

"Hey Mike." He feels a gentle hand on his shoulder; he turns around to see his mother looking very concerned

"Mom" he is exasperated and he has finally allowed the tears that have been threatening to fall all day hit his cheeks. Ella wraps him into a hug

"She's going to be okay, sweetie, it's okay." The anger bubbles up inside of him and he rushes over to Aria

"Did you know that she was sick?" His voice is harsh and pointed. Aria shifts in her seat uncomfortably "I can't imagine that she would be able to hide something like that from you, I mean you live in the same room."

"Mike, what are you talking about?"

"Cut the shit Aria! You know damn well what I'm talking about. You knew that she was sick, that she wasn't eating, she wasn't sleeping. You knew and you didn't say anything to anyone. Why the hell would you keep something like that hidden?!" By this time he is shouting, he looks at Aria, and waits for an answer. Spencer who is sitting next to Aria, sits waiting for an answer too, in shock.

"She made me promise not to." Is all Aria can manage to say, in a low voice

"Are you kidding me? She made you promise? This could have been so much worse! Had this continued…"

"But it didn't, and she is going to be okay." Mike stands towering above his sister, she gets up to confront him and he pushes her back into her chair. Byron goes over and pulls him away.

"Did you take your meds this morning?" Mike shakes his head, he had forgotten in the chaos of everything else, "We're going home, you need to take that, and don't you _dare _lay a hand on your sister, ever again. You hear me? I know you are upset but that is no excuse." Byron pulls Mike's arm and they leave, the three women remaining in stunned silence at the confrontation

"You knew?" Spencer nearly whispers, in disbelief her best friend would keep something this important from her

"I'm so sorry Spence. I…"

"No." Spencer puts a hand up to stop Aria from speaking "I just think you should go." Spencer stands up to go back to her sister's room "I'll keep you posted." Spencer leaves quickly. Ella puts a hand on Aria's back

o0o0o0o0o0o

Aria and her mom get home a little later. Aria goes straight up to her room. Stopping in the doorframe of the bathroom where Mike is standing, staring at the blood stain on the floor and side of the tub.

"It washes off, I promise." She places a hand on his shoulder. He turns and pulls her into a hug, heaving uncontrolled sobs into her shoulder. She stays stoic for him, brings him to his room and tells him to get some sleep before going into her own room. She looks to the small bed that had been set up for Charlotte; it remains unmade from the morning. Aria sits on it, grabbing one of the pillows into her lap and for the first time that day lets herself cry.


End file.
